Report Deadlines and Who Files

Important Campaign Finance Dates

2023 YEAR-END DUE: JANUARY 26, 2024

• Deadline: The last Friday in January each year.
• What needs to be reported: All transactions from the last report through December 31, 2023.
• Who files: ALL statewide candidates & statewide Elected Officials, statewide political action committees, statewide political parties and statewide *ballot question committees.

PRE-PRIMARY DUE: MAY 20, 2024

• Deadline: Fifteen days prior to the primary election.
• What needs to be reported: All transactions from the last submitted report through May 15, 2024.
• Who files: ALL statewide candidates & statewide elected officials, legislative candidates and county candidates (only if there is a race in that office in the district or county), statewide political parties, statewide political action committees and statewide *ballot question committees.

PRE-GENERAL DUE: OCTOBER 21, 2024

• Deadline: Fifteen days prior to the general election.
• What needs to be reported: All transactions from the last submitted report through October 16, 2024.
• Who files: ALL statewide candidates and elected officials, ALL legislative candidates & campaign committees, statewide political action committees, statewide political parties, county political parties, statewide *ballot question committee and ALL county candidates & campaign committees (in counties over 10,000 population; file with County Auditor).

2024 YEAR-END DUE: JANUARY 31, 2025

• Deadline: The last Friday in January each year.
• What needs to be reported: All transactions from the last report through December 31, 2024.
• Who files: ALL statewide candidates, statewide political action committees, statewide political parties, and statewide *ballot question committee, ALL legislative candidates & campaign committees and ALL county candidates & campaign committees (in counties over 10,000 population; filed with County Auditor).
• Political Party Termination: if a political party loses its party status a termination must be filed.

NOTE: No campaign finance disclosure report is required if the political committee regularly submits a campaign finance disclosure report with another state or the Federal Election Commission or a report of contributions and expenditures with the Internal Revenue Service. (SDCL 12-27-3)
PENALTIES: 12-27-29.1 In addition to any other penalty or relief provided under this chapter, the secretary of state, may impose a civil penalty for the failure to timely file any statement, amendment, or correction required to be filed by this chapter. The civil penalty is $200 for each violation. If any violation is made by a county political party or auxiliary organization, the civil penalty is $50 for each violation. Any civil penalty collected pursuant to this section shall be deposited into the state general fund.
12-27-29.4 Additional penalties not to exceed $250 may be assessed and the secretary of state may refer repeated violations under this chapter for prosecution by a state's attorney or the attorney general.
Ballot Question Commmittees: 12-27-22(6) If a statewide ballot question committee does not list any activity on the next required campaign finance report submitted to the secretary of state, that committee has until the next reporting period to report activity. If that committee does not have any activity to report by the next reporting period, the committee shall submit a termination report by that reporting period deadline.